Unprofessional
by Mardia
Summary: [Bend It Like Beckham] Takes place after the club scene in Germany. Joe thinks on Jess and the entire situation. Rated R to be safe, but most likely a heavy PG-13.


Title: Unprofessional

Author: Mardia

Email: mardia948@hotmail.com

Rating: R just to be careful

Category: Angst/Romance

Pairing: Jess/Joe

Summary: [Bend It Like Beckham] Takes place after the club scene in Germany. Joe thinks on Jess and the whole situation.

Disclaimer: The characters in Bend It Like Beckham are properties of Fox and other related entities. No infringement is intended, no profit is made.

Feedback: Yes, please.

Joe was officially screwed.

Really screwed. Really, _really_ screwed—oh, hell. He'd been a dead man ever since the day Jess Bhamra had run out onto his field with her breathy 'hi' and those damned chocolate eyes of hers. Just how the hell was he supposed to focus on coaching with a girl like that around, looking at him with those kind of eyes anyway? 

And just who did she think she was, looking like that in the club, with her hair all down and that outfit, looking bloody gorgeous—arrgh!

He flopped back onto his bed with a sigh.

He had known there was going to be trouble the day he'd seen her scar. He was pretty sure it was unprofessional to want to trace the scar with his fingers, see just how far it went up her leg.

He scoffed at himself. Unprofessional didn't even _begin_ to describe this—this infatuation. Obsession, crush, whatever.

Whatever this was, tonight, besides being disastrous, was also evidence that Jess clearly felt the same way. Joe wasn't an idiot, and he hadn't missed the way she'd looked at him at the club, leaning in for that kiss. _Wanting _it. And he knew it hadn't been the alcohol.

And then Jules had showed up, hurt and betrayed. Dammit. He'd known how Jules had felt, couldn't help but notice, and had hoped it would just fade away with time, with no one getting hurt. Now, from the looks of things, it'd be a while before Jules got over this, even though nothing had happened. 

But something had been about to happen. And worse, he would have _let_ it happen. _Wanted_ it to happen, for Christ's sake.

But Jules had walked in on their little scene, and here he was, alone in his hotel room, remembering the faint scent of Jess's perfume and the alcohol on her breath. Of her long, curling black hair and the way she giggled, leaning in towards him, her adoration so clear in her eyes. 

She's just a child, he reminded himself. Just a young girl who has no idea what she wants.

But she wasn't. She wasn't any of that. But it wasn't _right_. It was all wrong and messed-up, even if it felt right. And it _did_ feel right, so right he had half a mind to go up into her hotel room and—

And what?

He had no idea. Or rather, he had a very good idea, but that was not an option. _Really_ not an option. Not now, not ever.

But he couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to hold her, kiss her, touch her without fear or guilt. Wonder what it would be like to trace her lips with his tongue, know exactly how her skin felt beneath his hands. 

He was already too far gone to stop this. Joe was nothing if not honest with himself, and he knew he probably couldn't stop even if he wanted to.

What he was starting to suspect—or realize—was that Jess might be just as far gone as he was. Which was terrifying and thrilling all at once. 

But what could he do? He couldn't turn the feelings off—truth be told, he didn't want to turn them off—but he couldn't act on them either. He liked his job, and knew he'd be sacked if any of this got out. Not to mention he had a feeling Mr. and Mrs. Bahmra would probably hunt him down with shotguns if they heard about any of this. He wasn't about to admit it to Jess anytime soon, but her parents had quite frankly scared the shit out of him. 

But he still couldn't stop. Jess's face, her personality, everything about her had been imprinted into his brain somehow, and he couldn't make it go away. He didn't _want_ to make it go away. It had been a long time since he felt this way about anyone. 

Maybe even the first time he'd felt this way.

But he didn't know what to do. He couldn't shut this off, he couldn't act on it, he couldn't lose his job, he couldn't hurt Jules, he couldn't treat Jess like the rest of the girls—

Joe was starting to wonder just what he _could_ do.

Not much, apparently. 

He liked Jess. More than liked her. He wasn't going to apologize for it. And he wasn't going to hurt Jules or Jess either. 

In the end, that was all he could do. Not bad for a guy who was probably the most unprofessional coach ever.

End.


End file.
